Summary

  • Some of the best lawyer shows on TV have dedicated significant time and effort to accurately portraying the legal profession, while others prioritize entertainment.
  • Lawyer TV shows have been a part of television history for decades, with iconic series like Perry Mason and Matlock paving the way for the genre's popularity.
  • While there are many lawyer shows to choose from across various networks and streaming services, not all live up to the standards set by their predecessors.

With so many in-depth legal dramas on TV these days, any long-time viewer could end up feeling like a lawyer themselves after binge-watching some of the best lawyer shows. Some legal dramas spend less time than others on the law aspect, whereas others have clearly spent months researching and working with real-life defense attorneys. Many lawyer TV shows feature a different case each week, but the very best legal dramas go further than the procedural nature of the genre and take some major risks.

These shows are also nothing new to television and go back almost to the advent of television. In 1957, Perry Mason made his first appearance on television in a role that Raymond Burr stretched out for a decade. Matlock followed in a role that lasted just as long in the 1980s. Soon after, things changed to show groups of attorneys, both in the best lawyer shows and TV series that focused on both the police and the attorneys investigating and defending the cases. These days, every network and streaming service has an addition to the genre of lawyer shows, although not all match up to what came before.

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25 The Lincoln Lawyer (2022 - )

Mickey pointing to something at court in The Lincoln Lawyer season 2
  • Stream On Netflix

The Lincoln Lawyer has become one of the hottest shows on Netflix with is fast-paced approach to the legal drama genre. Based on the novels by Michael Connelly, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo stars as Mickey Haller, a smooth defense lawyer who runs his law firm out of his Lincoln Towncar. If the premise sounds familiar it is because Matthew McConaughey played Haller in a slick movie adaptation. Garcia-Rulfo makes the role his own and leads the entertaining cases and action-packed intrigue of Mickey's world where he can sometimes operate with questionable morals. With the fast popularity of the series, it is no wonder fans are already eagerly awaiting The Lincoln Lawyer season 3.

24 Rake (2010 - 2018)

Richard Roxburgh leaning in a courtroom in Rake
  • Stream On Acorn TV

It is often rewarding to look outside the US to find some truly great legal dramas. Rake is an Australian series and another show that deals with a defense lawyer as its lead. Such lawyers can be tricky protagonists as the thought of them potentially defending a guilty client can hurt their heroic appeal. Rake avoids this dilemma by making it quite clear Cleaver Greene (Richard Roxburgh) is no hero. However, he is a wonderfully entertaining character who takes pleasure in defending guilty people which can sometimes include big-name guest stars like Sam Neil, Hugo Weaving, and Toni Collette.

23 Perry Mason (2020 - 2023)

Matthew Rhys as Perry Mason looking dismayed
  • Stream On Max

Remaking one of the most beloved legal dramas of all time is a daunting task but it's one that the latest Perry Mason series pulls off. Matthew Rhys steps into the lead role of the series which is a period piece set in the 1930s which finds Mason as a down-and-out attorney looking to claw his way back amidst murder, corruption and scandal. Rhys gives a commanding performance in the lead role while the show's noir style sets it apart from the modern legal procedurals. Despite being one of the best Max original shows around, Perry Mason was canceled after its second season.

22 American Crime Story (2016 - )

An image of Cuba Gooding Jr's OJ Simpson in the courtroom in The People vs. OJ Simpson: American Crime Story
  • Stream On Hulu

Television titan Ryan Murphy's American Horror Story anthology helped to launch his spinoff which takes a look at real high profile trials and criminal cases that gripped the public. With three seasons so far, the series has taken a look at murder and political scandals, but those looking to get into the series should start with the electric first season which carried the subtitle The People vs. OJ Simpson. There is a fair bit of camp involved in recreating some of the most outrageous aspects of the trial, but it is all grounded thanks to an amazing ensemble that includes Sarah Paulson, Courtney B. Vance, Sterling K. Brown, and John Travolta.

21 Eli Stone (2008 - 2009)

Eli Stone in a cathedral
  • Stream On Hulu

Eli Stone is one of the few best lawyer shows that actually inject a sense of humor into its episodes. The comedy-drama follows the titular San Francisco-based detective as he goes about working on cases that are morally rewarding but have no financial gain. The show is borderline surreal, as Stone (Jonny Lee Miller) regularly hallucinates and makes some extraordinarily accurate predictions, such as an earthquake hitting the city. Unfortunately, Eli Stone was canceled too early, as it ended after just two seasons and before wrapping up the show's events, and fans never got a satisfying conclusion.

20 Fearless (2017)

Emma and Kevin standing in a house in Fearless
  • Stream On Freevee

While most of the best lawyer shows are set in the U.S., Fearless puts the spotlight on U.K. law. The six-part limited series is set in London and follows a human rights lawyer who attempts to prove that a convicted murderer is innocent of the murder of a schoolgirl 14 years after he was tried and convicted. With a cast that includes Michael Gambon and other great British actors, the limited series packs a dramatic punch that few of its peers can reach. The show has a cinematic quality to it too, as it was directed by Pete Travis, known for movies like Karl Urban's Dredd.

19 Matlock (1986 - 1995)

Matlock with his hands out on the titular show
  • Stream On Prime Video

Ben Matlock was an interesting case when he showed up on TV in 1986. Played by the popular Andy Griffith, Matlock was a good old boy attorney who also worked as a detective in his own cases, although he also had some help. Somewhat comparable to Columbo if the character was an attorney instead of a lawyer, what resulted was one of the best lawyer shows on TV, as it moved from NBC to ABC and then ended up in syndication after nine seasons and 193 episodes. While it might not reach the same levels as the best lawyer shows, Kathy Bates is starring in a new version, coming to CBS.

18 Bull (2016 - 2022)

Bull sitting at a table.
  • Stream On Paramount+ & Prime Video

Bull came to CBS with a major star in place, and he helped bring the fans that followed the show through six seasons. Michael Weatherly left NCIS to take the lead role in Bull, where he played the head of a jury consulting firm that helped his clients select the right jurors for their cases. He also worked to plan arguments to help the lawyers win the cases, loosely based on the early career of Dr. Phil McGraw. Bull was one of the best lawyer shows in its first two seasons, finally coming to an end in 2022.

17 Ally McBeal (1997 - 2002)

Ally McBeal cast photo of the smiling actors.
  • Stream On Prime Video & Hulu

Ally McBeal was a strange beast when it arrived on Fox in 1997. Created by David E. Kelley (Boston Legal), this was a comedy-drama surrounding a law firm and the title character, who worked for it. Calista Flockhart starred as Ally McBeal, a lawyer working for a Boston law firm. The cast was incredible, with Robert Downey Jr., Courtney Thorne-Smith, Jane Krakowski, Lucy Liu, and Hayden Panettiere co-starring in the series. While the show was responsible for what was one of the first internet memes in the Dancing Baby, its fantasy sequences made it unlike any other of the best lawyer shows on TV.

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16 Reasonable Doubt (2017 - )

Chris and Melissa in Reasonable Doubt
  • Stream On Hulu

Tons of shows called Reasonable Doubt, most of which are lawyer shows, have come and gone over the years, but one of the best lawyer shows and one of the newest is the series that started in 2017. Reasonable Doubt takes on a concept that no other show has, as it follows two investigators who re-examine open-and-shut murder cases and find out if the convicted people's families should appeal the verdict. While the show lacks recognizable actors and is almost unheard of, it's such a slept-on gem. And as it's five seasons deep, it's one of the most binge-worthy too.

15 Your Honor (2020-2022)

Bryan Cranston as Michael sitting in a courtroom in Your Honor
  • Stream On Showtime

Bryan Cranston jumped back into television after becoming a movie star, as he plays a judge whose son kills a teenager in a hit-and-run in Your Honor. The series is special because it’s one of the few serialized legal dramas, whereas others tend to be procedural case-of-the-week type shows. Initially billed as a miniseries, Your Honor was brought back for a second season that was also highly praised. But what audiences got was something special and completely different from anything in the genre, and Michael Desiato (Cranston) isn’t much better than Walter White from Breaking Bad.

14 How To Get Away With Murder (2014 - 2020)

An image of Annalise Keating looking serious in How To Get Away With Murder
  • Stream On Netflix

As so many occupational shows take place where the main character acts as a mentor to a group of people, whether it’s medical shows like House or detective shows like Lie To Me, How To Get Away With Murder is the legal drama’s answer to those shows. The series follows Annalise Keating (Viola Davis), a law professor and criminal defense attorney who takes five students under her wing. It’s a fascinating drama, as those very people become intertwined in their very own murder plot. The show is rated so high mostly due to Davis’ incredible portrayal of Keating, where she was the first Black woman to win the Outstanding Leading Actress Emmy. And it has some interesting crossovers with Scandal, too.

13 L.A. Law (1986 - 1994)

The legal team of L.A. Law staring into the camera.
  • Stream On Prime Video

Before Law & Order, there was L.A. Law. This show takes a look inside a prominent Los Angeles attorney firm. Created by Steven Bochco (NYPD Blue), it follows a large ensemble cast as they deal with parallel storylines with a strong mix of social drama. Much like Law & Order, it takes a look at the cases investigated, many pulled straight out of the headlines. However, this had little to do with the police and was all about the lawyers working the cases. The cast included Harry Hamlin, Corbin Bernsen, Jimmy Smits, Blair Underwood, and more. There was also a huge cast of guest stars appearing every week.

12 Suits (2011 - 2019)

Suits' Jessica, Mike, and Harvey standing in a conference room
  • Stream On Netflix & Peacock

Suits is most interesting because it looks more at the inner workings of the law firm than it does the actual cases that the firm takes on. As the series follows Mike Ross (Patrick J. Adams), a law associate who never actually went to law school, Suits cleverly sees the character close the book on cases while maintaining his secret at the same time. For the most part, the show is full of predictably angry, loud, and obnoxious lawyers yelling over one another with the densest law terminology possible. Lately, Suits has been breaking Netflix viewership records proving there are still people discovering the series.

11 Goliath (2016 - 2021)

Billy looking to the side in Goliath
  • Stream On Prime Video

Goliath was a Prime Video original series starring Billy Bob Thornton. The series lasted for four seasons before it was canceled in 2021 and told the story of a down-and-out lawyer looking for redemption. The show was important in that it showed how corruption ran rampant in the legal system, which favored the wealthy. Thornton himself was responsible for much of the Goliath's success, giving a compelling performance as Billy McBride, a formerly brilliant lawyer who helped a man on trial for murder get a not-guilty verdict, only to learn that he killed his family. Thornton won a Golden Globe for the show's first season.

10 Marvel's Daredevil (2015 - 2018)

Wilson Fisk grabbing Matt Murdock in prison in Daredevil
  • Stream On Disney+

While Marvel's Daredevil, one of the early Netflix successes, is a superhero series, it's just as much of a procedural drama, as Matt Murdock (Cox) goes about solving cases as the best lawyer in Hell's Kitchen. Murdock is an attorney at law by day and a masked and very violent vigilante by night, and both parts of the character are equally entertaining. Though Daredevil features a groundbreaking hallway fight and is full of other phenomenal isolated action sequences, the courtroom scenes are just as exciting. The series is getting a sequel/reboot with the MCU's Daredevil: Born Again, and Cox and Vincent D'Onogrio will be reprising their roles too.

9 The Good Wife (2009 - 2016)

Alicia sitting in a meeting in The Good Wife
  • Stream On Paramount+

The Good Wife is grounded in reality almost more than any other of the best lawyer. As the show is about a wife of a state attorney who goes back into law when her husband is caught in the middle of a sex scandal, The Good Wife is massively influenced by real-life events, such as the scandal involving Bill Clinton. The show interestingly explores the dynamic between these women who allow their careers to take a backseat to further benefit their husbands' ambitions, even when they are caught with their pants around their ankles.

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8 The Good Fight (2017 - 2022)

Diane, Liz and Lucca standing in front of a red background in The Good Fight.
  • Stream On Paramount+

As acclaimed as The Good Wife was, there are some fans who would suggest its spinoff series was even better. The Good Fight sees Christine Baranski return as Diane Lockhart who is forced to start from the bottom when her savings are totally wiped out and she loses her job. Starting a new firm, she builds a team and begins taking on the big cases of the day. The show is accessible enough for new viewers, taking more interesting and bold storytelling chances that really make it a thrilling series in its own right.

7 The Practice (1997 - 2004)

The Practice cast
  • Stream On Hulu & Prime Video

The Practice is another David E. Kelley series, one of many legal dramas from the TV titan. The legal drama was created as an answer to L.A. Law, which was a show that totally romanticized the American legal system by making it flashier and cooler than it really is. The Practice was much more realistic, it actually treated its viewers with respect, and it didn't dumb anything down. When it came to legal proceedings, deep themes were explored, including personal morality, which was a great approach considering criminal lawyers had never really been depicted in such a light before.

6 Damages (2007 - 2012)

Patty leaning on her thumbs and smiling
  • Stream On Hulu

Though it was fairly short-lived compared to other legal dramas, as many of them tend to have hundreds of episodes, Damages is one of the most engaging lawyer shows there has ever been. Glenn Close stars as Patty Hewes in the show and each case spans a whole season, so more time and effort has gone into the research, and it properly breaks down how legal proceedings go, unlike other shows that throw weeks-long proceedings into 40-minute episodes. What also makes the show so intense is the fact Patty will do anything to win a case, no matter how unethical it is.